Gillian Welch won the prestigious 'Artist Of The Year' award at the 2012 Americana Honors & Awards in Nashville.

Her musical partner, guitarist Dave Rawlings, won 'Instrumentalist Of The Year' in the ceremony at The Ryman Auditorium.

Englsh folk singer-songwriter Richard Thompsonwas handed a Lifetime Achievement Award for his career as a peerless songwriter. He later perfomed a version of Vincent Black Lightning 1952.

The Civil Wars, whose debut album Barton Hollow went gold this week, won duo/group of the year and Jason Isbell, who played alongside his fiance, fiddler Amanda Shires, won song of the year for Alabama Pines.

Producers Tamara Saviano and Shawn Camp won album of the year forThis One's For Him: A Tribute to Guy Clark. The win came after Clark took the stage for a performance of My Favorite Picture of You. The 70-year-old told the crowd: "I wrote this for my wife Susannah, who died in June. I wish she could be here to hear it. But I'll play it for her anyway."

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Bonnie Raitt and Booker T. Jones (of Booker T. & the MG's fame) also earned lifetime achievement awards — Raitt as a performer, Jones as an instrumentalist. "It means the world to me because I'm the daughter of a performer who played until he was 87 years old and he made every night like opening night," Raitt said.

Raul Malo also performed at The Ryman, singing Come Unto Me and a showstopping verison of The Weight in tribute to Levon Helm.

• ALBUM OF THE YEARWinnner: This One’s For Him: A Tribute to Guy Clark – Various Artists Nominated: Here We Rest – Jason Isbell & The 400 Unit I’ll Never Get Out of this World Alive – Steve Earle The Harrow & The Harvest – Gillian Welch